Dream tracks down his pouch of sand.

The third chapter of The Sandman is the point where the show is most divergent from the comics, but that’s OK, as we still reach the same end point, just take a slightly different route to get there.

Written by Jim Campolongo, this episode showcases occult detective Johanna Constantine (Doctor Who’s Jenna Coleman) who has been tasked with performing an exorcism on a member of the royal family. She’s also crippled with a recurring nightmare that forces her to revisit a previous demonic encounter that went wrong. In steps Dream, who asks for the return of his sand pouch – one of his objects of office – in return for making the nightmare go away.

Let’s address the elephant in the room. Yes, it’s no longer the comic book’s Hellblazer John Constantine, he of the short-lived TV series / Legends of Tomorrow and Keanu Reeves movie. And before the cries of ‘Why the gender switch to Johanna?’ let’s not forget that Johanna is already an established character in the comics (John’s ancestor), so this makes perfect sense.

The pairing of stoic Dream and sassy Constantine is a fun double-act, there’s some impressive demons and good use of the Greenwich location filming. Aside from the main plot, Patton Oswalt’s Matthew the Raven makes his first appearance, and John Dee and the Corinthian continue their stories.

Verdict: After the context-setting opening episodes, the show pushes forwards in a more self-contained episode. 8/10

Nick Joy